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Some changes are worth a little pain

Our basement bath and laundry room (also known as the dungeon) are undergoing a long-overdue facelift. One side effect of this is three kids temporarily sharing a bathroom – two fairly low maintenance boys, and one not-so-low maintenance girl who comes with a lot of gear.

The previously empty bathroom counter now holds: two hair brushes, a curling iron, hairspray borrowed from a neighbor, two bottles of nail polish, a half-eaten sprouted wheat bagel, an extra toothbrush and tube of toothpaste, and twenty-two (count them) twenty-two other items. My boys are not welcoming the change.

Change can be painful. It can be inconvenient. It can be stressful. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t undertake it – especially when the outcome is worth some pain and inconvenience. To make the journey easier:

Establish what a positive outcome looks like. It’s really hard to get somewhere if you don’t know where you’re going.

Assess the cost before you start. If it feels like a financial stretch get comfortable that there’s an ROI you can live with.

Don’t try to go it alone. Line up the resources you need to help you.

And one more thing – make sure the people helping you share your vision and values. I’m fortunate to be working with the world’s most tidy contractor who not only appreciates my desire to maintain some semblance of order, but also knows I cannot go more than a few hours without a functioning washer and dryer.

My boys will have to suffer through a few months of shared space. Then they can focus their energy on a new argument – who gets to use the awesome new bathroom.